Modal RunsA Lydian on Guitar
Lydian is the major scale with the 4th raised a semitone — major, but floating instead of grounded. The notes of A Lydian are A, B, C#, D#, E, F#, G#. Its characteristic note is D# — the sharp 4th — the one note that gives this major-type scale its colour.
It is the dreamy, weightless sound of film scores, "The Simpsons" theme, and Joe Satriani ballads ("Flying in a Blue Dream" is a Lydian tutorial with a record deal). The sharp 4th refuses to resolve downward the way a normal 4th does, so the whole scale hovers.
A Lydian across the whole neck
Over the drone, hold the sharp 4th and let it ring — in any other major context it would be a wrong note; here it is the point.
Formula and intervals
R - 2 - 3 - b5 - 5 - 6 - 7 — 7 notes. The natural 3rd makes it a major-family scale.
Chords in A Lydian
These are the diatonic chords — the harmony built from only the notes above. Vamping between any of them keeps you inside the mode.
| Degree | Chord | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| I | A | Major |
| II | B | Major |
| iii | C#m | Minor |
| iv° | D#dim | Diminished |
| V | E | Major |
| vi | F#m | Minor |
| vii | G#m | Minor |
Same notes, different home
A Lydian contains exactly the same notes as E Major. Nothing about the notes changes — what changes is which one feels like home, and that changes everything about the sound.
Other modes on A
Keep the same root and swap the scale — the fastest way to hear what each mode actually does.